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Recycle and Save up to 50%

About Us

Portside Printer Cartridges is a true local business based in Wilmington, North Carolina. We're not a chain -- we are a neighbor, working with you and walking with youthrough hard economic times. We are here to serve local businesses like yours, to help you save on products you use every day. We realize every dollar counts. That's why we started this company, to grow with yours, to be a trusted partner meeting your needs for economically-priced printing products. We enjoy getting to know people who buy from us, by making personal contact with them. We cherish the time when "contact with customers" meant a handshake and a smile rather than a click and an e-mail. We don't worry about contracts: we concentrate on building relationships, and if we can't earn your trust we don't deserve your business.

Our Business

Although we carry OEM, and compatible products, our "environmental side" leads us to encourage the use of remanufacturing and recycling. Join us in our efforts to protect planet Earth in this small but important way: start using remanufactured cartridges today! What you do today can help all of us tomorrow.

The average new, brand-name cartridge takes up to 3 quarts of oil to make.

Environmental benefits

𐂋 97% Recyclable

The typical used toner cartridge weighs about 3 pounds and is composed of 40% plastic, 40% metal, and smaller percentages of rubber, paper, foam, and toner.

The plastic is made of engineering-grade polymers and takes at least 1,000 years to decompose when discarded. However, approximately 97% of cartridge components COULD be recycled and reused.

𐂋 Conserves Resources

Use of remanufactured toner cartridges reduces pollution and waste by minimizing the amount of material such as plastic, steel, aluminum, and rubber disposed of in landfills. It also conserves natural resources by eliminating the need for virgin materials used to make new cartridges. For each pound of new material used in remanufacturing, 5 to 9 pounds of virgin materials are conserved.

𐂋 Saves Energy

Using remanufactured toner cartridges also saves energy.

Approximately 3 quarts of oil are burned in the production of a single new toner cartridge. A used toner cartridge can be remanufactured up to four times, depending on its type and condition -- thus potentially saving up to 12 quarts of fuel.

Toner Cartridge Tips

Printing problems are generally caused by either a printer malfunction or a toner cartridge malfunction. The following tips can ensure good toner cartridge performance or help determine the cause when a problem arises.

𐂋 Troubleshooting: The best way to determine whether a problem is caused by the toner cartridge or the machine is to replace the cartridge with one that you know is working well. Or you can switch the cartridge to another machine. If changing the toner cartridge corrects the problem or the problem follows the cartridge to another printer, then the cartridge is most likely defective.

𐂋 Maintain Equipment: Clean copy machines and printers frequently according to the instructions on your equipment.

𐂋 Keep packaged until use: Do not remove the toner cartridge from its package until you are ready to use it. The shelf life of a cartridge in an unopened package is approximately 2.5 years. The shelf life of a cartridge in an opened package is approximately six months.

𐂋 Handling: When handling a toner cartridge, never touch the drum surface and always protect it from light. Place empty cartridges back in the protective foil bag.

𐂋 Storage: Do not expose cartridges to cold or hottemperatures or extreme humidity.

CARTRIDGE COLLEGE!

What is a compatible cartridge?

It's a replica of the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) product minus the brand name stamp. Compatibles are new cartridges designed, manufactured and rigorously tested to ensure quality, just like the OEM products.

What is a remanufactured cartridge?

Simply put, it's a used cartridge in which all parts have been replaced on it except the plastic shell or core.

What's involved in the remanufacturing process?

Our meticulous 10-step process is what separates our company from "the other guys." First, we take the cartridge completely apart and steam clean it. We replace any worn parts, marking them for recycling.* Then we reassemble the cartridge, pressure-test it, add ink or toner, and test for print quality. Only after it passes all tests do we repackage it for sale. So, your purchase is basically a new cartridge that is environmentally responsible, and less expensive than new.

It's something we DON'T do! Refills, otherwise known as drill-and-fills, are cartridges in which the toner or ink is poured through a hole made in the casing, which is then resealed. Most suppliers using this method don't check for worn parts. Nor do they clean the cartridge properly. Often, the result is poor print quality and fewer printed pages per cartridge. In any case, refills simply do not measure up to the standards set by compatible and remanufactured cartridges.

Why use compatible and recycled catridges?

Besides the environmental benefits that remanufactured cartridges provide, lower cost is a huge reason to switch. They cost 30 to 60% less than their OEM counterparts.

A case study of King County, Washington, proves the point!

Since 1991, King County has successfully used remanufactured toner cartridges in all departments. In 2001, the county purchased 4,765 remanufactured toner cartridges at a cost of approximately $155,500. The savings (of taxpayer dollars) was $300,000 in that year alone.

Now ask yourself: can your business afford to keep paying unnecessarily high prices for ink and toner cartridges? Call Portside Printer Cartridges right now, and start saving today!